Question: If each of the variables represents a different digit, what is the value of $a+b+c+d$?

[asy]
label("$a$",(1,0),E);
label("$b$",(2,0),E);
label("$c$",(3,0),E);
label("$d$",(1,-1),E);
label("$c$",(2,-1),E);
label("$a$",(3,-1),E);
label("+",(-2,-1),E);
draw((-2.1,-1.4)--(4.1,-1.4),linewidth(0.5));
label("1",(0,-2),E);
for (int i =0; i<3; ++i) {
label("0",(1+i,-2),E);
}
[/asy]
Explanation: Let's perform the addition one step at a time. The first step is adding $c$ and $a$ in the right column. Since $c$ and $a$ can't both be 0 and $c+a$ is at most $9+8=17$, we know that $c+a=10$. The one carries over.

The second step is adding $b$ and $c$ in the middle column. Similarly, we know that $b+c+1=10$ (the one is from the carrying over), so $b+c=9$. The one carries over.

The third step is adding $a$ and $d$ in the left column. Similarly, we know that $a+d+1=10$ so $a+d=9$.

Thus, we have the three equations \begin{align*}
a+c&=10\\
b+c&=9\\
a+d&=9
\end{align*} Adding the last two equations gives $b+c+a+d = 9 + 9 =18$, so our answer is $\boxed{18}$. This corresponds to $(a,b,c,d)\Rightarrow (4,3,6,5)$.